Wayne/Pike County Flu Clinics
Honesdale - Wayne Memorial Hospital’s Home Health Department and the Area Agencies on Aging in Wayne and Pike Counties will jointly offer flu shots for the 2006-2007 season at the following locations: Oct. 17, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m., Honesdale, 323 Tenth Street Oct. 24, 9 a.m. - 1 p.m., Pike Co., Blooming Grove Center., state Route. 739, Lords Valley Oct. 26, 9 a.m. - 12 noon, Hawley, 300 Park Place, Bingham Park; VFW building Nov. 2, 9 a.m. - 12 noon, Hamlin, state Route. 590 Salem Township. Nov. 8, 9 a.m. - 12 noon, Pike Co., Blooming Grove Center, Route. 739, Lords Valley Nov. 9, 7:30 a.m. -10:30 a.m. Damascus Community Twp. Building Nov. 15, 1 p.m. -3:30 p.m. Waymart Pharmacy, U.S. Route. 6/296, Waymart Nov. 21, 10 a.m. - 12 noon Preston Township. Building, Lakewood The doors to all the centers will open at 8 a.m., except in Damascus which opens at 7:30 a.m. A “number system” will be used to facilitate flow. Anyone seeking a flu shot must go to the Senior Center on the day the shot is given and pick up a numbered ticket with a vaccination time right on it. In this way, people can leave and come back at their scheduled time. Hospital personnel will follow the Centers for Disease Control recommendations for this year’s flu shots, according to Mary Lou Hoffner, RN, Manager of Wayne Memorial Home Health. That means that flu shots will be prioritized. Doses will be given to people age 65 or older and people at risk who have a prescription from their physician. Healthcare workers who provide direct patient care and residents of long-term care facilities will also be on the priority list. No flu shots will be offered at these clinics to children. Flu shots are covered by some insurance plans, including Medicare, Geisinger Health Plan and First Priority. Other health insurance plans do not cover flu shots (Blue Cross and Medical Assistance Access). If you have to pay for a vaccine, the Wayne County Area Agency on Aging says the private pay charge will be $18.00 This year’s vaccine will not protect against H5N1, the so-called “avian pandemic flu” that is migrating from Asia to the West. This year’s vaccine will help protect however against the more common varieties of influenza that have been circulating recently. For more information, such as specific directions to a site, you may contact either the Wayne County Area Agency on Aging at (570) 253-4262 or the Pike County Area Agency on Aging at (570) 775-5550.